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November 20, 2013

Mets Payroll To Exceed $87 Million In 2014, Or Nah?

Yesterday, ESPN-NY quoted Sandy Alderson as saying he expects the Mets' 2014 payroll to exceed $87MM, the total from last season. This is getting tough.. For years we've heard this would be the season when things would change. In recent weeks the front office has made every effort to lower expectations. And now, this?

One encouraging note is that this is the first time Alderson has said they will be forced to bid market prices, despite the fact that they feel free agent prices are high. This is good news, assuming he means it, because many fans, myself included, have been insistent on this very issue since the GM meetings. Teams will always overpay for the best talent and the Mets will no different. In fact, it could be worse for the Mets considering their recent lack of success.

The one thing Alderson most accurately acknowledged was that he should not predict anything specific, stating "The worst thing I can do is predict that something will happen and nothing does happen." If you have your ear to the ground, you would know that the fan base has reacted very strongly every time any free agent has signed elsewhere. Any failure to follow through is an instant reason for uproar.

I would be cautious in accepting this $87 million or more number as gospel. It comes with the built in excuse of "we'll we tried to spend money, but we were outbid or player X simply wanted to play elsewhere." That said I hope they are genuine and that it is done responsibly. For now we will just have to see how the winter unfolds.